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The King's Festival
Prelude to a Kiss The Festival of Lucy the Fae King. Nairn’s signature gathering. The amount of revenue generated from the tourists who travelled from across the Clover Kingdom was so great that the city’s council contributed it to 60% of the village’s yearly prosperity. The small town was decorated with countless banners, each depicting a piece of the famed story. Red. Purple. White. The colors of the famous Fae King who built Nairn to escape the invading forces of the river demons. Children ran about, singing his accolades and his hymns while women laughed and gossiped about each other’s personal lives. Spreading tales of false grandeurs to impress the other housewives. Rarely did such a common town experience such peace. But it was almost religious that the festival goes according to plan. Even the church partook, overlooking their commitment to purging paganism. The evening continued on as plan. Stands and vendors opened as the giant effigy was brought to the town's center. Confetti and scraps of colorful paper fell from the sky as magicians used their gift to bring the festivities to life. As the sun slowly fell behind the mountains of the distant earth, endless lights and candles punctured the settling darkness. Whereas people would usually prepare for a quiet night, the town exploded in music and song. Bards sung their legendary epics and actors reacted the legendary battles. The scent of food mingled with the fumes of alcohol. Nairn’s famous bread, only available tonight, brought hundreds to the crowded streets as they jumped from vendor to vendor. It was true that only the Star Festival could outperform the Fae King’s festival. For so many brought their families to enjoy this wholesome treat. “Carcolh, we have word that there might be an attack in Nairn this evening.” Letters took form. Floating from the corner of the page onto the top, becoming a complete sentence in under a second. The yellowish book glowed with an ominous aura as the messages appeared, word by word. Ezekiel, who sat sideways upon Étoile Filante's ebony shaft, hovered atop a roof, letting the clock tower of the church masquerade him in shadow. His messenger book floating before him just as his grimoire would during combat. “It will be orchestrated by Arnaud Archpriest. A leader in the satellite branches of Yehuda.” “Yehuda.” He repeated. “The religious movement bent on killing all other worshippers. Why are they getting involved with this festival. Even the Holy Church is participating.” The ebony mage bit his nails while falling deeper into thought “Unless that’s why. Attack the people and the church of Clover in one strike. Not just causing destruction but also attacking their spiritual strength as well.” "Do not..." Ezekiel's eyes darted to the page once more. Even though he wore his special midnight blazer which had an Azure Deer insignia stitched into the left breast, this message wasn’t one which involved the Magic Knights. Not yet at least. These missions were meant for espionage and information gathering. Which would be sent to the Magic Knights to assure they are prepared for victory. It sounded like they weren't too sure about this attack. And so they needed someone to confirm any suspicious activity. They're probably preparing a squad now. No need to waste manpower at the capital for something that '''might' happen.'' Ezekiel thought to himself as he tapped the ancient wood of his favored broom. He could feel its thoughts resonating with his own. ”Do not..." The words scrambled upon themselves. No matter how hard Ezekiel tried to feed it his mana, the ink refused to make legible shapes. Seconds later, the book's quiet hum died alongisde the calming glow. The ebony mage closed the now normal book and placed it into his knapsack. The connection has been severed. He moved around the outskirts of the city. Their songs, prayers and blessings illuminating the sky alongside fire and light. Magic flowed freely throughout the city, as if the king himself walked the streets. But the blue haired priest would not partake in the festivities. Such pagan rituals. And the fact the Holy Church partook meant that it was nothing but a member of the false prophet's regime. Beneath a bear fur cloak, the shadow stopped at each major direction of the city. His hands glowing before a tree shot from the ground. The Magic Knights won't be joining the festivities. He said with a joyful glee. That's right. His underlings had caught a couple of the kingdom's spies snooping around their base. He remembered their screams as he tortured the peasants and commoners that this kingdom sacrificed for their own greed. Intercepted messages. Manipulated so that his plans would come to proper fruition. The growth of the Tree of Sacrifice. With which, a fruit that would grant him the mana of all who occupied within. The shadow continued to move, his preparations finishing. And as the sun vanished, the town of Nairn had became separated from the rest of the world. A Wondrous Evening Between Friends Lea inhaled and exhaled deeply. “Okay.” She knocked on the wooden door. “Colby! Colby, it’s me Lea….,” she begun, twiddling her thumbs, “I-I was wondering if you um. Well, so listen okay. There’s this festival going on right now, and I wanted to know if you wanted to go.” For some reason, the request sounded more unreasonable coming out than it did in her head. How stupid could she be? “It’s just that you’ve been training so much, that I feel we might….um, you know, need a break or something. Just for one night! I always go to the festival, but my father can’t go this year, so I figured…” her voice trailed off into silence. The young man was inside his room training to the max, he had a dumbbell in one hand while still training his sword skills in the other his sweat covering the floor. Colby kept training as he heard Lea’s request, for whatever reason while training he had a more confident demeanor as opposed to his usual one of shyness, this was due to his mind being lost in training “Coming!” Colby opened the door his shirt still off showing his surprise lean and muscular body. “I-I would love to go, I loved going with my mom, at least, when I could go.” Colby thought back to his dead mom and when they would go to the festival along with his brother. Colby drooped his dumbell almost jumping in the air due to the impact on the floor. He scratched the back of his read, his shy demeanor returning, “W-What time should we leave? W-We have to get there early to enjoy all the fun stuff!” Colby said smiling through the shyness. “Let’s go soon, okay! Just put on some clothes….or don’t! hahahaha! Whenever you’re ready, we’ll head out,” Lea informed. She begun walking away after her, assumingly, awkward joke. “I’ll go get the carriages ready for our departure, okay?” And with that, she was gone, rushing to the stables to prepare for their voyage to a small town outside the Royal Capital. “HAHAHAHAHA.” Colby began to awkwardly laugh at hearing the joke uttered from Lea’s mouth. As he watched her walk down the halls she slowly begin to stop laughing before, closing his door and slamming down on his extremely comfortable bed courtesy of House Kira and taking a break before hitting the showers and getting ready 2 HOURS LATER Colby was nearly done getting ready, he donned a black and yellow yukata with gold accents on the color and sleeves. One oddity of his outfit was that he still carried his sword as well as leaving one half of his yukata open and hanging down on his hip. “I guess she did kinda say I could come naked, right?” Colby shrugged it off before tying us his hair and snugging his grimoire in his haramaki, which he wore under his yukata. “All ready! Now to find, Lea.” He took off into the halls in the direction of Lea’s room, to where he would soon arrive. Lea leaned against the wall outside of her room, her arms folded across her arms and feet crossed one over the other. She exhaled deeply as she waited, and then there were footsteps echoing throughout the corridor. She looked up and passing through was finally Colby after all this time. "Well, don't you dress up nicely." "I guess so, huh?" Colby blushed, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. Colby looked Lea up and down, the girl was still in her casual attire. "You look great as well, Lea." Colby would warmly smile at the Lea, who would be leaned a on the wall across from him. "So shouldn't we get going? Is our ride even ready yet?" Her inhale and exhale was deep after his inquiry. "Yes. It's waiting for us now," was about all she could manage without sounding frustrated. See, Lea was under the impression that Colby wasn't going to take too long to prepare for the festival, so Lea had immediately arranged for a ride to be ready for them. She had been waiting almost two hours for him, and so had their carriage. Therefore, there was still a sore spot there so much that she had completely missed his compliment. She forced a smile. "You ready to head that way?" Colby sped up now walking beside, Lea. As they walked in silence for a moment, Colby could sense the agitation eminating from, Lea. "Hey, Lea. Sorry for whatever I've done. You seem agitated and these things are usually my fault." Colby continued walking with Lea mostly in silence despite the risidual noise within the home. "Lets hope you don't stay agitated ofr long though, we have a lot of fun ahead of us." Colby would say with a smile breaking the silence. Lea looked down at Colby and smiled. "I'm sorry being agitated Colby, but I can't stay mad at someone like you." In all of her time as a young adult, there had been many who made false promises and apologies to Lea. Colby was somehow different. He was somehow so genuine despite all the adversity his house faced, or perhaps it was because his house faced such adversity that they had no choice but to become genuine. "Let's have some fun, okay?" "Yeah, let's!. I can't wait to see what they have set up for this festival!" Colby runs ahead of Lea, spotting the carriage in the distance. He jumps in ,taking a seat, trying hard not to look like some over enthusiastic child. He patted the seat next to him. "Jump in, Lea! We have lots of fun to have." Lea nodded and stepped up onto the carriage, helped by one of House Kira's retainers. She sat down next to Colby, her arms folded in her lap. "To the festival, please." There was little hesitation between her command and the action. Almost immediately, the carriage begun in the direction of the festival. Lea looked over to Colby, scooting closer to him. "So Colby. What is your brother like?" "Jack's a little hard to explain, I guess, in a way, he's like a fire. He's loud, hot headed, brave, and lacking sanity. You should meet him one day though, he is a lot more than just a handfull" Colby laughed, thinking back on his hot headed brother. "What about you? Do you have any siblings?" Colby would say, leaning closer to Lea, awaiting an answer. Lea nodded. "I have an older brother who was once in the Magic Knights. But, he now works as a treasure hunter for Clover. I haven't seen much of him sadly." Colby could sense the tention and sadness that possibly lied within Leas relationship with her brother. "Well I hope you get to see him soon." Colby would say taking Lea's hand in support, not even thinking about how she may react to the sudden hand touch. After a few seconds passed the carriage came to stop. "All right, Lady Lea, Sir Colby. This I'd your stop, have fun at the festival, the both of you!" The driver would say looking back at the two. Colby still holding Lea's hand began to exit the carriage nudging Lea along with him. "Come on, Lea. Let's have some fun!" Colby would smile at Lea, eminating a warm and bright energy, akin to the sun's rays. Lea's face nearly turned red from Colby's actions, yet she remained quiet as she was casually pulled along through the crowd. Who would've thought that he was so bold? The little shy boy she had met a few years ago, yet here he was, pulling her through a crowd of people with little to no remorse. What strength! She smiled. "Yeah, we're going to have some fun Colby." Colby looked around in awe at the beauty of the festival, from the lights to the many booths it looked amazing. Colby didn't know what to do first. He stopped after moving past the initial large crowd reaching a clearing in the festival space. Still holding Lea's hand he turned back to look at her. "Where should we go first? I was thinking we could do some games first then get a bite to eat, maybe we can even check out some dancers and performers!" Colby would look at Lea, stars in his eyes. Colby hadn't been able to get out much as of late due to his family's strained relations with the general public, so this day was especially exiting for him and it showed. "Hmmm...." Lea hummed as she ran through her thoughts. What did she enjoy the most about the Festival? The games? The food? There was always so much she wanted to try, and so much she wanted to eat. But, for as long as she could remember, she had never been able to conquer the famous funnel cake that was served every single year. Whenever she wanted to try it, her father would force her away, or the stand would simply run out due to demand. Not this time. "I want a funnel cake, Colby! Just this once." “Funnel cake it is then, after that games. There’s one game I play every time I come here though, I blow up the booth every time haha!” Colby laughed thinking back to the times he would fail at playing the festivals magic shooting game, almost always resulting in a destroyed booth. Colby takes off once again in the direction of the funnel cake booth. “Look there’s no line.” Colby pointed scurrying through the crowd before arriving at said booth. “Two funnel cakes please!” Colby said to the vendor, failing to greet them properly. “Wow, my funnel cakes must be that good. I can’t even get a proper greeting, huh Colby.” The vendor would say recognizing the young boy from years past. “Your mother raised you better than that, now didn’t she?” The vendor quickly packed up two funnel cakes handing them to the small boy. Before Colby could reach into his pockets the vendor stopped him. “It’s on the house, Colby. Just promise to return next year and bring your lady friend there back again. Young love is so beautiful!” The vendor said holding back his laughter, his eyes on the two young mages interlocking hands. “So what’s your name little missy?” He would say, addressing Lea. "...." Lea simply stared at the vendor. Young love? How did he get to that? Colby, loved her? She looked at their hands, interlocked with one another. Is that what this meant? Love? When she had asked her hand maidens for advice, they stressed that physical contact was a sign of adoration. But love? It was too quick for love! Lea wasn't ready to be loved by anyone yet. She smiled. "My name is Lea," she begun, sliding her hand out from Colby's to shake the Vendor's own hands. "Colby has been a friend of mine since our childhood." The vendor looked at Lea pull her hand away to shake her own and laughed. “It’s nice to meet you honey, I’m Carlotta, though most people just call me Lottie.” The vendor looked past the children at the growing line of people behind them. “Well I’ve got customers to attend to, so shoo shoo, go on and enjoy the festivities.” She begun to wave of the two young mages. “Nice to see you again, I’ll make sure to say good afternoon when I come next year.” Colby would say with a smile as they walked from the booth, funnel cakes in hand. Colby banded one to Lea before beginning eating his own. “Wow, I’ve never had a bad funnel cake, brings back memories. Anyways, we should get a move on, the games shouldn’t be too far from here, come on.” Colby said waving at Lea to follow him as he started off in the direction of some games. "Man, Colby. You have so much energy!" Lea yelled, jogging to catch up to Colby as he bolted from one area to the next. He was like a little child, going to every little thing that caught his attention before being dragged to the next thing. But, that was what Lea liked in Colby. That innocence he seemed to have despite everything that happened regarding his family. They had virtually lost everything, but in their rebuild, Colby seemed hopeful. She wished she had that. "I'm coming through! Let's play something fun!" As they moved towards the games you could hear multiple vendors and several different advertisements, all doing everything they can to entice you into playing their game. "COME ONE, COME ALL TO SHOOT 'EM! WHERE YOU CAN TEST YOUR MAGIC POWER AND CONTROL BY TRYING TO HIT THE TARGET AND WIN A PRIZE!!" The vendor locked eyes with a starry-eyed Colby. "You there, come enjoy Shoot 'em, I promise you'll love it!" He would say to Colby, ushering him over to where he stood. "Lea, I think I found the game we should play! C'mon." Colby rushed to the booth sitting down in front of the vendor, staring down the barrel of a gun. "So if I remember this right all we have to do is channel our magic mower into this gun to hit those targets." Colby would say pointing to the red targets. The vendor swiftly nodded his head yes and smiled at the young boy. Colby would then look at Lea. "You ready?!" Colby would say as the vendor issued the start of the game. Lea walked over and sat down in the seat beside Colby, placing her hand on the gun. There was always a discomfort whenever she touched a ranged weapon. She suspected it probably had something to do with her magic, for as long as she could remember she always felt a detachment from anything other than a sword. Though, perhaps that was because she had a special place in her heart for a blade no matter how proper. Still.... "I'm ready whenever you are, Colby." Lea smiled. "Though, don't be upset if you get beat." The vendor nodded and begun the game. Lea's first few shots were directly on point, as she had expected. Though she didn't like ranged weapons, her father made sure that she was experienced in using them. A game such as this was just as she anticipated; a game. She looked to capitalize on her lead. Colby looked over to see that Lea had taken a sharp lead over him. He began to pour his magic into the gun aiming it at his target but, as he shot the gun began to spark and after only a few shots jammed. "Huh, why isn't this working? I put my mana into it, isn't that enough?" In an instant, the gun imploded sending sparks in all directions destroying the booth and the gun itself. Leaving Colby a mess of soot and static charges, his hair in a large ball due to this. The vendor seemed to be knocked out and only a few prizes were left on the floor not completely burned. Colby looked over to Lea most likely affected by the explosion as well. "A-Are you okay? Cough Cough" Colby said coughing up soot. Lea’s body peeked through the cloud of debris and smoke that was generated by the explosion towards Colby; her blade that rested quietly alongside her hip was drawn. “I’m fine, Colby!” She responded, stepping towards him. “Take deep breaths and relax your body. All time for the smoke to disperse. You didn’t inhale enough for it to be deadly,” she continued, glancing around at her surroundings. The vendor was passed out on the ground beside them, and as much as she wanted to check on him, her duty was to Colby. “What the hell happened?” "I guess having good magic control was apart of this game and...I severely lack that haha." Colby laughed it off still coughing up smoke though, it seemed to be steadily leaving his system. Colby had gotten up, he fixed his hair as well as his clothes. "S-See I have a shit ton of magic power but, almost no control over it. So, when I do use my magic, it ends in destruction." Colby walked over to the remaining prizes and picked one up. He walked over towards Lea handing her the stuffed bear. "Well, since the vendor is...asleep and we technically did hit the target, maybe we can take one?" He said shyly as he looked around at the destruction he caused. "Hmm..." Lea deduced. "Yeah sure, grab one!" Winged Messenger Andreas came riding in a carriage to the festival, he had said that he didn't mind walking here but his parents would not hear it. They said that as the first member of House Agostini to obtain a four-leaf, Andreas had to keep up appearances. Although his parents couldn't be bothered to come, the very people who had forced him to come to this festival refused to be here in person. It was clear that they did not want to mingle with the commoners and nothing could change their minds about this. As he got off the carriage, Andreas signalled for his driver to take his leave after all it was a festival for all to enjoy. Looking around he could tell that this was most likely not going to be his cup of tea. Forming a pair wings, Andreas flew over the townsfolk and unto a rooftop, in an attempt to spot anyone his age which he could talk to. "I wonder if anyone I know will be here, but I highly doubt that. After all the holy church taking part in this may not have been a strong enough motivator for the other nobles to show their faces." Sighing deeply he went on to sit down on the roof, making sure not to slip. "I suppose that's for the best though, the last thing I need is a bunch of snotty nobles causing a scene.." Andreas somberly said as he looked over the town. "What.. Did I become a messenger pigeon or something?" Still grumbling about his dad's order to be in the festival, Neal stepped down from his broom and settled on the ground. He just happened to be at a nearby town with his father for a business occasion. "Well, first I need to check up on a few local businesses owned by us.. And, let me see who I am looking for again... Andreas Agostini..." he said indolently. Apparently House Aguilar wanted to deepen their relationship with House Agostini, most nobles families do. A 4-leaf appearance definitely brought a substantial amount of attention and influence into Andreas' family. Pulling out the letter from his pocket, Neal attempted to read the letter with his spell but it was unsuccessful, the letter seems to be encoded with an even stronger spell. "Time for some practice.", just as he was trying to use his spell to search for Andreas, he spotted a figure with a pair of wings sitting on a roof. "Ohh..think I have found him.." mumbled to himself. Neal landed on the roof from his broom. "Hey, are you Andreas Agostini?" He asked unenthusiastically. "That is my name." Andreas nonchalantly said as he stood up to greet the mysterious boy. "If you were looking for my parents I'm sorry to say that they couldn't make it. Although I would be more than happy to take a message, or were you here for something else." Gesturing at the boy's broom, "I mean you wouldn't have gone through this much trouble to find me if it wasn't important, or am I just being a bit too presumptuous?" "Ahem" Neal cleared his throat, somewhat annoyed by the noble's naggish behavior. "I am Neal from House Aguilar, I was tasked by my father to pass on a message to your family." replied as he pulled out the letter from his pocket. "And you are right, I am here for another reason." "Nice to meet you Neal. It's my first time meeting someone from House Aguilar. My parents had tried to arrange a meet in the past, but I guess things never really worked." Andreas let out a small cough in an attempt to break the silence. "If you would please excuse my rudeness for asking you so many questions, but are you by any chance the same age as me? Fifteen that is." as he inquired, however another thought came to mind "Earlier you spoke of another reason for you being here. Care to elaborate?" "Yes, I got my grimoire at the same time as you. Do you happen to know.." Neal replied but was interrupted. "Wait!" Andreas said, tapping his chin before having a sort of eureka moment. "I think I remember seeing you in the ceremony! You were the one who cast that weird spell on everyone's grimoire! I was going to look for you after the ceremony, but I couldn't find you anywhere. What type of spell was that actually? " Andreas replied with slight mixed feeling of anger and curiosity "Yes! That's me! That's my information magic. Now don't interrupt me again. Do you happen to know anything about yehuda?" Neal replied "Yehuda? That's a first." Andreas fell into deep thought trying to figure out the word. It was no surprise that he didn't know about it though, after all he spent the majority of his childhood in training in isolation. All for his sake they said, but he knew all they cared about was the redeeming of their damned family name. It was horrid. "It's a religious movement founded centuries ago, their ultimate purpose is to diminish the gap in social standing and bring equality upon everyone. They started out as a peaceful organization, however the group began taking some extremist actions recently." "The reason I am telling you this is because the intel unit in our house has picked up on some suspicious activity in the festival, being a festival sponsores by both our families, there may be some kind of warning attack." Neal cautioned, "You, being a 4-leaf user and a noble, may potentially be their target." "M-Me? Th-Their target?" Andreas stuttered, clearly shocked at the fact that he may very well be Yehuda's target. Why would someone target him? He had done no wrong in his life, none that he could think of anyway. What about everyone else at this festival? Would this religious group truly stoop so low as to hurt them just to get to him? "If this 'Yehuda' situation is as dire as you say, why was my family not told of this threat before time or at the very least why were the Magic Knights not informed?" "If they are not aware of the threat then there is something seriously wrong with their Intel gathering. Although, I doubt that, I definitely sense a few strong presence of mana in the festival." Neal stated "As for your family, we did not want to worry them with mere possibilities of an attack. As we of House Aguilar pride ourselves in our data gathering, meaning that unless we have all the facts we will not make a move." "Besides aren't you an aspiring magic knight?" Neal began scratching his head in annoyance. "You should be more than eager to engage these foes in combat, that will increase your chance of getting an offer from the squad you want to join." Neal suggested. Listening to the noble's words, Andreas lost sense of the fear that had began to slowly seap into his thoughts. Neal was right, as an aspiring magic knight he had no time to be worrying about things like 'what if', he needed to deal with what was in front of him. And that was preventing a possible terrorist attack. "I suppose that you're right Neal." Andreas said, before letting out a sigh of relief. "Anyway, moving away from that topic what did you mean by 'you'? Aren't you planning to become one yourself?" "Yes and no. I planned to to join the magic knights solely because of the amount of resources, ancient documents and libraries they have access to. Another plus for me is the amount of opportunities they have to explore dungeons, think of the amount of ancient artifacts just awaiting to be found and studied." Neal replied. "I suppose that's a reason, just not the reason I was expecting to hear. I'm guessing that you plan to join the Azure Deer such a squad is befitting for someone like you, don't you think?" Andreas inquired. "Personally I don't care about the type of squad I'd join, as long as they have enough resources." Neal replied. "Is that so?" Andreas took notice of the letter in Neal's hand, before hitting himself on the forehead. "Of course, the letter. I had completely forgotten about it. Here I am, asking questions about everything besides what is was you came here deliver." Taking the letter from his hand Andreas went on to place it in his haramaki for safe keeping, but not before hesitating for a bit. Still holding the letter in hand "What is this letter about anyway?" "Nothing that I know of." Neal had tried to read the letter earlier using his magic, since opening the letter himself would have been not only rude but disrespectful too. But since the letter was technically in the hands of a member of House Agostini he could now find out its contents. "Although since I did deliver to a''' member of House Agostini you could open it and find out. Just a suggestion though." he suggested, waving his hands in defense in case anyone said that he forced him to. "Hmm...as tempting as that sounds I'm going to have to turn down your offer." It was not often that Andreas would not cave in to his curiosity, but today was a special day for him. This was one of the few days that he got to go out and mingle with others, although strangely enough he did not find this appealing and yet he still enjoyed his time away from his manor. "The last thing I need is for my parents to berate me on the importance of respect." Hopping down from the roof, his wings slowly disintegrating into a flurry of feathers attracting the attention of a few onlookers. Andreas began walking away while he signalled Neal to come along. "I do not intend on spending the entirety of my time here sitting on a rooftop doing nothing." Neal hopped on his broom and flew down to ground level, while following him. "The last time I checked you were the one sitting there alone and doing nothing. I just happened to come across you, that's all." This was not what he had planned for this evening, he had planned to sit in and take notes on his father's business dealings, but what was one more interruption? Feeling a bit stressed, Neal cracked his neck "If you had no plans this evening, I had to go check on some of my family's local businesses," repositioning his glasses "You could come along if you wished. Besides this could be the perfect opportunity to scout the area for the assailants." "Giving us a better idea as to how many of them we are currently dealing with." Andreas shook his head "I suppose that's a much better idea than what I had in mind." The sky has gotten pretty dark, the street of Nairn which was usually quiet and dark at night was filled with the colorful decoration lights and lively vibe today. After they continued their conversation on the ground. Neal has subsequently checked up on a few partnering businesses while observing for any suspicious movement on the street. By now he has simulated hundreds of possible way the attack might happen in his head. If there is going to be an attack, now would be the perfect timing. However he still was not able to find any unusuality on the street. "Well maybe I am being too paranoid" Neal wondered in his head and tuned down his alertness but he could not felt at ease, the thought that he might have missed something important constantly came up to his mind. "Neal, there seems to be something growing underground." a voice broke his chain of thoughts. Andreas pointed out the moving branch of a tree which can be seen through from a broken brick on the road. Neal caught up to the direction of where Andreas is point at before sensing a surge mana from the ground. He opened up his Grimoire while placing his hand on the ground. "Information Magic, The Blessings of Demeter" Neal cast the spell. Seconds later, he realized how naive he was to his guard down. "Fuck, it's too late! Why didn't realized it sooner!? Andreas, I need you to open up your mana skin and take me up to the sky immediately!" Neal shouted with a sense of urgency. "Too late? What are talking? Too late for what?" Andreas inquired, as he looked around for anything out of the ordinary but he found nothing. Besides a couple of drunk townsmen arguing over whose mother made the better funnel cakes there was nothing that could've rattled Neal that badly. "Listen, Neal. I don't think the funnel cakes are that bad." Andreas joked. "Andreas! Now!!" Neal shouted to him again Outside the town, the hooded man scurried throughout the darkness while dropping seeds. But these seeds weren't meant to retrace his steps or anything. No. They burrowed deep into the earth, where they fed upon the ambient mana of nature. This was quite a spell the man prepared. And such, required some time for it to come into fruition. Which he didn't mind. This will be the last night many people here can enjoy each other's company. He could find himself almost bursting with laughter. Anarchy was fun. The world existed in an organized chaos that humans created in hopes of a false sense of security. But the chaotic energies were always on the boundaries. Waves almost tipping over the wall that was lies. Attack on Festival If not for the masterful control he possessed on his own mana, Ezekiel would have probably succumbed to the madness of the tainted air. Instead, he could feel a foreign influence attempt to invade his being. I can't even sense whose behind this. The madness is fucking up my sixth sense. He venomously spat to himself in anger. He could feel the waves of madness and hatred washing over the town. Violence, regret, jealousy and envy exploded throughout the area. It interfered with his spiritual sensitivity so much that what should have been as clear as day became a needle within a haystack. Whoever was behind this was nothing more than a drop of water within an ocean of chaos. I have to have a look around. But this could get much worst if they find me. The ebony broom carried the mage downward to the nearby building. A three story house with an abandoned attic. He slipped in through the window and held his hand upward. His palm glowed a bright purple before a magic circle appeared upon its surface. Surely anyone that would attempt to open the door would find themselves bound to the walls by a forest of branching bones. It would also keep anyone else from coming to the floor. Leaving the window as the only way of access to the building. The young mage hovered to a corner and jumped off his broom. He sat in a mediative position and took a deep breath. '''Bone Curse Magic: La Vie Après la Mort White liquid appeared before Ezekiel and began to dance in a small circle. Minutes later, a skeleton stood before the seemingly sleeping mage. It picked up a nearby cloak and jumped onto the broom. Now to see what's going on. This spell cuts me off of my own magic source. And the surrounding spell is interfering with my connection with Mana Zone. The skeleton did the closest thing it could to sighing. I'll survey the area and return for my body if I need it. Their laughter and songs filled the night sky with a thick sense of joy. Children danced while women continued their gossiping. Men worked the stands as they attempted to please the tourist who came to experience this magical evening. But the true magic was happening around the walls of the town. The blue haired visitor raised his hands, commanding branches to latch onto the walls. They continued to grow, expanding throughout the entirety of the structure. Trees grew from the earth and their roots reached deep beneath the town. It took but a single minute for this miniature forest to grow outside the town and form a complex network under the earth. Had the festival happened on another night, maybe the townsfolk would have noticed the abundance of magic in the air and the rare sensation filling the air. However, the pollen of the blooming flowers that latched onto the walls seemed to only enhance their celebrations. Songs were sung louder and dances performed harder. Madness seemed to envelope the town. Laughter. Screams. Children chasing after one another with knives rather than the sticks they played with seconds before. Amidst the confusion and chaos, the blue haired man made his way to the town's circle. HIs hand clasped in a prayer as he continued to whisper. His mana skin protected him from this enchantment. Allowing him to watch as the townspeople slowly but surely went mad. Blood spilled on the earth disappeared immediately, as if drunk by the ground itself. The man whose stand had just been destroyed watched the two young magic knights converse. His body burned as he felt the excitement throughout the heavens. And such, he picked up one of the guns and aimed it at the boy who just destroyed his livelihood. He made sure that the muzzle lined with Colby's heart before pulling the trigger. His magic power, despite being laughable, possessed enough punch to tear through a rookie's chest. Especially one who wouldn't expect it. Without hesitation, Lea's foot slid in front of Colby's body in the same instance that her hand slipped onto the hilt of her sheathed sword that rested upon her back. As the magic bullet closed in onto her body, which had now been positioned In front of Colby, Lea's blade surged downwards towards the earth, slicing the projectile in half entirely and dispersing it across into the cosmos. "Colby, run!!" Lea shouted. She stepped forward, establishing a pivot foot while simultaneously reversing the grip on her sword, providing her the strength necessary to reverse its trajectory upwards vertically; she intended to slice the man in half as well. The man wasn't a magic knight. He'd been a simple family man attempting to provide for his children. His wife just gave birth several weeks ago, which was why he chose to work this festival. A thundering scream erupted from his throat as the sword of the young rookie came crashing down like a strike of lightning. He fell to the ground. Surely to bleed out in a matter of minutes if no one assisted him. "W-W-WHAAAATTTT!?" Colby would scream in shock, he was flabbergasted, not just by the attempt on his life but, at the soon to be dead man bleeding out on the floor before him. "W-What happened." Colby would say in a hushed and shaky voice, holding onto Lea's shoulder as to calm himself down. Surprisingly in a matter of seconds, he was calm, a rare occurrence considering Colby was a generally bewildered person. "We can't let him die. Despite the fact he tried to kill me, we have to know why. We can't let this attack go unpunished. C'mon, let's try to patch him up." Colby ran over to the man jumping over fallen rubble from the exploded booth. He then kneeled before the man, ripping off a strip of fabric from his clothes using it to patch up the strangers wound as well as he could to stop the bleeding. "Lea come here, I-I need your help moving him and holding his wounds, w-we need to get to the nearest Magic Knight or at least someone who can use healing magic." Colby would say stuttering over his words due to the dire circumstances. A Bitter Rivalry? Nearby, two rival families armed themselves with weapons from their kitchen. They screamed obscenities at one another, preparing to launch themselves into a total war. What was a shouting match slowly became two militias slowly approaching each other. Their killing intent strong enough to send the shivers down anyone's spine. The streets erupted into a mess of glee and murder. Men and women began singing louder and dancing harder as people began gourging each others eyes out with knives and forks, pretty much anything with a sharp edge, as if they were celebrating the shadow of death which had engulfed the festival. Children joined in on the celebration, circling around the deceased and as they sang to their hearts content. Others squirmed at the site of the dead, letting out a loud shreek before proceeding to end their own lives. They did so with wide crooked smiles on their faces, as if they were more than happy to join their loved ones on the other side. Andreas stared at the townsfolk in horror. Not because mothers had began murdering their husbands, not because servants had began turning on their masters, not because siblings had began turning on each other but simply because they looked so happy doing it. Taking a step back he reached for his grimoire, shining a magnificent violet as his hand got hold of it, pulling it out frantically. Still shaken by the sudden turn of events he could hardly make any words out, as he desperately tried to cast a spell from his book. As he spoke, his voice was not filled with hatred nor spite, nor was it shaken, instead he began laughing hysterically. Tears began running down his face, as he fell to the ground laughing louder and harder than before. Barely managing to make any words out as he ran out of breath, he found himself reciting a spell but not just any spell. A spell meant to be used against an enemy, although in this instance he found himself aiming the spell at one of the two rival families that had took their feud to the streets. "Our funnel cakes are better than yours!" a women from one side said, as she said this whispers erupted on her family's side. "I heard they make their cakes using deceased birds. As one of the onlookers heard this, he immediately spat out the cake and began stepping on it. "Ugh! How sickening! How could you feed me such a thing commoners?!" the man screeched as he pulled out his grimoire, more than happy to help his new allies. "You will pay for your impudence!" It went on for a while as the man let out slurs and insults at the opposing family. As the two families began to clash a powerful gust blew them apart from each other. As some commoners rejoiced others stood there in horror, as Andreas had the very same look as those afflicted by the curse. It was pure anarchy. slap Fell down on the ground, Andreas woke up from the madness state he was in. An unfamiliar sense a pain emerged on his cheek. "What on earth.. did I just get slapped? Even as a kid my parents didn't resort to slapping me, maybe a good lecture or two but never a slap." He began messaging his cheek with one hand "Man, this is one of the most painful things I have ever felt." he grumbled. "Well, this was the only thing I could do now. I don't have a spell that can get you out of that madness. So I thought an extreme sense of pain may bring your conscious back. But if that did not work and you started attacking me, I would have just left you here." Neal said coldly while looking down at Andreas. He continued, "Now, get your ass up and open up your wings and turn on that damn mana skin, we will not last long on the ground." Neal jumped on his broom. Slightly annoyed by Neal, Andreas managed to calm himself down and followed what Neal suggested. He understood the urgency of the matter at hand and knew that they had to get off the ground before that strange feeling took hold of him again. To counteract the strange effects he coated his form in mana, and took off from the ground. "Man, just how did you manage to slap me this hard, I feel as if my jaw almost got dislocated. Or maybe it did.. " Andreas asked still massaging his face. "I added reinforcement magic to my slap, an ordinary one probably would not have worked. Okay, forget about that slap, Andreas have you managed to acquire that spell which can put people to sleep?" Neal asked, completely brushing off his question. "Well, actually yes, I have been practicing that one quite a lot. The only problem is that it doesn't last as long on people with a substantial amount of–wait a minute! Just how did you know about that spell? If I didn't know better, I'd say that you've been spying on me.. " he accused, feeling that his privacy had been invaded. "Don't forget that I read everyone's grimoire, I already knew what spell you were gonna have. Meanwhile I have already analysed the geographical information of this place. I'll bring you to where the wind direction is in our favor so that your spell can affect as many people as possible." Neal answered. Andreas let out a deep sigh "I swear that's your excuse for everything.. " Staring at the bloodied streets, he couldn't help but wonder what kind of madness had engulfed the town. ---- Thud That was the last sound he heard before he found suddenly himself plummeting to the ground in a sort of spiral motion. He landed face flat into the ground, his body still vibrating from the impact. His senses were all over the place, again. Picking himself up from the ground, his face engulfed in a shadowy mask. He slowly turned around to face his Neal, ready to give him a piece of his mind and maybe a punch or two while he was at it. "Seriously.. how many times am I going to get hit in one day?! Does he honestly think that my face is some sort of target? In any case he's done for once I get up.. " he grumbled. He swung his fist at him with remarkable force for someone who had hardly learnt how to throw a punch, although it stopped a few millimeters before it made contact. His face was pale with fear. The thing standing in front of him. The thing that he had presumably crashed into was not Neal, it was instead a skeleton flying around on a magic broom. "A-A skeleton? O-On a broom?" he winced. Waving his hand at the creature while spotting a nervous smile, he looked over the creature's shoulders, scanning for his partner to no avail. He probably didn't notice me falling.. I swear that he has it out for me... Since there was no way to escape, not in the condition he was in now. Andreas figured that he could at least try to converse with the creature, maybe even convincing it to let him go. "H-Hey there S-Sig. Skeleton you wouldn't happen to be the g-grim reaper now would you and l-lets just for entertainment's sake that you are him, would you rather not have some candy instead of–" He paused as he slowly pulled out his grimoire, hoping that the creature would not notice him doing so. The skeleton would've sensed the winged child approaching...but the magic which tainted the area screwed with his sensory abilities. And the lack of intention ruined all chances of him feeling Andreas's arrival. One minute the skeleton soared throughout the air, the next his skull was knocked off its spine. If not for an unusually quick reaction, allowing it to grab its head and reattach it, the skeleton would've been nothing more than a lost body. The skeleton's empty eyes peered upon the white haired child's feeble attempts at diversion...the idea of candy surely causing what would be his stomach to grumble and mouth to water. "I could go for some candy." The skeleton replied. "Although I don't have any pockets!" It slammed its boney fingers against its head. "No! No time for that, I have to figure out what's going on!" The skeleton turned its void eye sockets to the boy's grimoire. "I figured you had some magical ability as this spell isn't effecting you. Come help me get to the bottom of this!" The skeleton seized control of its broom before reorienting it. The skeleton raised its hand and caused a series of bones to emerge beneath the earth. Creating several branches which would help restrain several violent citizens. I don't have much magic in this form. I need to find out whose behind this and get back to my body. "Come on!" The skeleton ordered as his broom launched forward. Andreas watched in awe at the skeleton's strange but funny reactions, it was because of this that he could not help but laugh a bit. "A skeleton that likes candy.. now that's something you don't come across every day or any day for that matter.. " he trailed off trying to figure out whether this weird skeleton was the one behind this attack. Although he needed to be on high alert about it told him that he was no threat to him and that he didn't orchestrate any of this madness. In fact he himself was trying to find out who was behind this, or so he said. Although after watching it restrain some people who were bound to injure themselves he confirmed his suspicions and began easing up around the skeleton. Noticing that the skeleton had does off and instructed him to come along he outstretched his wings and took flight, quickly catching up to it. "Hey there Sig. Skeleton I don't mean to be rude or anything especially after you didn't eat my brain and saved those people back there but what are on Earth are you exactly? I mean you don't seem to be an enemy or any death gods, I hope anyway, but–you are a skeleton though.. " "Oh?" The skeleton laughed. He wasn't used to using this form for team missions. And the fact this kid couldn't recognize him meant that he wasn't familiar with the Magic Knights. As the skeleton rode Étoile Filante, he turned to Andreas and cocked his head. "You don't know me?" He said somewhat hurt. "I'm Vice-Captain of the Azure Deer, Ézéchiel Ébène-Terre. But you can call me Ezekiel." His native name always sounded weird coming from the mouth's of Clover citizens. They lacked the nuances required to speak it. "Never mind this form," The skeleton continued. "It's a spell I developed that allows for easier reconnaissance. My body isn't far from here." The two travelled quite a distance before the skeleton picked up another signature.... "He's on the move..." The skeleton turned his broom and started in a different direction. "Kid, what's your magic? I'm limited in this form and might need backup." Andreas was completely lost. The skeleton he had been following was in fact none other than a magic knight. A vice-captain no less! As he followed the skeleton he stared intently at it, trying to come up with something to say. He had probably insulted the captain with his childish behaviour earlier, something he was taught not to, he wanted to find some way of making up for disrespecting the esteemed magic knight. Things were quiet for a while and after covering quite a distance the skeleton finally broke the awkward silence, something which he had failed to do. Hearing that Ezekiel may require his aid he let out a loud shriek before covering his mouth. This was not like the shy child his parents knew, the one that had been trained to be a soldier, this was another side of him that he had kept hidden for years. His inner child. Meeting someone of Ezekiel's ranking and being asked to assist him caused to him to geek out. "I accept! I mean I'd be more than happy to help you Signore Skele- I mean Signor Ezekiel." he grinned, scratching his head before continuing "I am Andreas of House Agostini and as for my magic-" Tilting his head at his wings "These two beauties speak for themselves, now don't they?" Ezekiel eyed...or the closest thing he could do to eye...the rookie's wings. And his excitement could be felt despite lacking an actual face to show it. "Wing Magic!" He exclaimed. "I heard so much about it. They say the elves were masters of it. Which explains why it's so prominent in noble blood." Contrary to what Andreas might've thought. Ezekiel was also child when it came to magic. Magic was something that drew his attention regardless of age or status. And so he looked to Andreas with a sense of purpose. A desire to see the child grow into a powerful magus! No now's not the time. Ezekiel shook his head. The skeleton's skull rattling from side to side. He lead the winged mage to where he felt the strongest intention to kill. A shiver would've caused the hair on his skin to rise, if he had hair! Étoile Filante, his most beloved treasure, slowly hovered over a nearby roof. He quickly raised his skeletal hand in order to draw Andreas close by without catching the attention of the commotion below. Mysterious Madman Lea was equally as confused as Colby rushed to save the man who had just attempted to kill him. She had assumed she had done the correct thing. After all, that’s what all her training had taught her; to keep moving forward until all her enemies are destroyed. Still, she felt for some reason, compelled to listen. “Colby, this is a terrible idea,” Lea replied, sliding onto her knees and pressing her hands onto the wounds of the man. “He just attempted to kill you, so why don’t you go look for a Magic Knight. I’ll stay here and make sure he doesn’t die….for the time being.” "Let him die." A mysterious voice whispered. The blue haired sage of the wild felt a sudden jolt of magic power and decided to investigate. His connections assured him that there weren't magic knights in this town tonight to ruin his fun. So the disturbance he felt shouldn't have occurred. But it didn't matter to the mad priest. The magical power he felt was nothing more than a bunch of children running around playing Magic Knight. He held his hand up and from his sleeve launched several sharp branches. They exploded with enough force to pierce through the stone wall behind the kids. One branch splitting to impale the man through his stomach. Before Colby could make the move to go search for a Magic Knight the man who had attempted to kill him was now dead, at the hands of this suspicious figure. For Colby, this was one shock after the other, but he knew he couldn't just stand there, what if he deigned to take their lives next. He moved in front of where Lea and the now deadman stood, halfway drawing his blade, ready to take action. "W-Who are you?" Colby still couldn't help but stutter over his words in the face of this odd and impending threat. “That’s of no importance to us right now, Colby,” Lea replied, lifting herself onto her feet. She picked up her blade from the ground and stepped forward in front of him towards the blue haired sage. “He’s hostile. Which means, that I have no choice to but to fulfill my responsibilities as a warrior: I’ll destroy him here.” Lea lifted her blade in front of her. “Allow me to have the first joust.” "Sure, I'll grant you the first death." The old man sang. His hands moved as if he embodied the concept of extravagance. And such, the roots beneath the earth grew into massive branches that wrapped around itself. Suddenly the explosive growth pierced through the air towards Lea's stomach with enough power to crash through concrete. Small pieces of fruit fell from the fruit and littered the ground. The skeleton, which hovered on his ebony broom on a nearby roof, looked to Andreas with a cocked head. "Do you know them? They look your age..." Ezekiel asked. "Hm.. " but thinking about it Andreas did recognise the two, or at least thought he did. However thinking about it further, he did know them from the acceptance ceremony, he didn't talk to them back then but he definitely saw them there. "Yeah, I remember seeing them somewhere, we all attended the same grimoire acceptance ceremony meaning.. " They couldn't be magic knights, not yet anyway, they were mere hopefuls like him. Despite feeling the desperate urge to help them he awaited Sig. Ezekiel's orders. As Andreas and Ezekiel engaged one another in conversation, Lea dealt with the old mage attacking her, flipping backwards to avoid the first branch that charged her. Yet, just as quickly, another surged towards her with remarkable precision. Lea’s next step was elegant, like a dance, as if she had rehearsed it countless times. She stepped backward with her left foot, sidestepping the root entirely, before immediately following it up with an upward slice from her blade, cleanly cutting through the replica-projectile like a knife through hot butter. Just as her blade reached its highest point from her upward slash, Lea allowed gravity to aid her next attack by using its momentum to empower her downward slice. Though, as she did, she conjured the mana deep within her, manifesting her sword magic’s basic power. The blade surged downwards through the air with remarkable precision, releasing a slice of mana that exploded forth towards the man in front of her like a deadly crescent blade. The man was impressed. To conjure her magic so quickly and combine it with physical combat took skill and control. Which, under the circumstances of his earlier spell, could prove difficult even for the most seasoned of magicians. But this was not his first rodeo. And these little runts were far from being certified Magic Knights. Still, he knew that the girl was more of a threat than the yellowed haired child. The man lifted his hand and commanded the a tree to rise above. Its bark strong enough to dissipate the magical crescent. He followed with another barrage of branches. However, although this set merged into a gigantic spiral, it quickly unraveled inches away from Lea in an attempt to entangle her. "Rule No. 1 of battle. Observe and gather as much information as possible. Don't worry about your friends, I won't let anything happen to them...Although the sword-maiden there seems more than capable." The skeleton's eye sockets seemed to absorb the scenery. Almost watching the ensuing combat with a religious heart. I have to rely on the environment when in this form. Ezekiel thought to himself. He pulled out his favored wand, the Cypress Wand, and began to slightly guide it before him. The surrounding spell interfered with casting external magic, which would increase the amount of time for him to actually realize his plan. His silver wand danced just as elegantly as the sword-maiden below. Its ruby gem shining brightly in the ensuing chaos. And such, the flow of natural magic began to follow the command of the skeletal magician. He seemed to splinter it into several directions. Skillful magicians would notice mana begin to coagulate behind the crazed man as well as in a nearby alleyway located to the children's left flank. However, he hid his efforts beneath the powerful spell enveloping the town. "We'll help them once there's a proper opening." Andreas responded with a simple nod, trusting that the man had his reasons for remaining stationary for the time being. In a matter of seconds his attention shifted from his friends to Ezekiel's wand. "Woah, that wand is so cool. I've never seen one like it.. where did you get that?" he questioned.